Hey, guys!

Thanks for all of the love on the last chapter! Currently sick (I caught covid) so there might be some typos...

I hope you enjoy!

Chapter Two

Clark breathed a sigh of relief when his mother's AI flickered to life.

Lara blinked, then a smile appeared on her face. "Kal-El, my son," she greeted warmly. "What brings you here?"

"I need your help, Mother," Clark said. He tried to keep calm, but the words came out of his mouth faster than any human could ever speak. "Something happened... Jon-El's dying."

Lara looked down at the boy on the ground. "His heart beats backwards," she stated.

Clark nodded. "He's from the Inverse World," he explained. "He's... He's Jon's doppelganger."

He didn't add anything else, but he found himself thinking it. Please save him.

Lara nodded. "I see," she said, then focused on Jon-El again.

"Mother?" Clark asked.

"It's as though the energy has been drained from his body," she said. "He is also malnourished, dehydrated, and suffering from minor injuries. Was he in a fight?"

Clark frowned. He was about to say no, but then he remembered everything that had happened with Jon-El in the past week. He hadn't just been in one fight, he had been in multiple.

"He's been in a couple," Clark answered. He couldn't tell his mother the truth though. He couldn't tell her what Jon-El was. "Can you help him?"

Lara nodded. "I believe so," she said. "Stand back, Kal."

Clark's eyes widened as he stepped away from Jon-El. "What are you doing to him?" he asked.

"I am going to try to flood his cells with energy similar to a red sun to promote healing," she explained. "It could save him."

Clark nodded, then backed away. "Okay."

He watched as red light flooded the room and encompassed his son's doppelganger. This had to work. Clark had no idea what he would do if this didn't work…

After a moment though, he found Jon-El's backwards heartbeat in his ear again. It was faster, stronger. Clark felt the weight in his chest ease just a little.

The bright light went out and Lara turned towards Clark. "I've done what I can," she said.

Clark nodded. "Thank you, mother."

He walked back over to Jon-El. The boy was just as pale and his eyes were still closed, but maybe there was a chance now.

Clark reached down and picked him up, then flew towards the farm.

It only took a couple of minutes for Clark to reach his home. And as soon as he did, he walked up the stairs with Jon-El.

He adjusted his hold on his son's doppelganger, then carried him into the guest room of the old farmhouse.

He laid Jon-El down on the bed before reaching down and feeling his head. Jon-El's pale skin burned with fever. Every once in a while, a tremor would go through the boy's body, but he didn't wake up. He didn't show any signs of waking up anytime soon.

Clark reached down and gently removed the leather jacket from Jon-El's body. Once removed, he placed it on the chair beside the bed.

"There you go," Clark said softly. He spoke to Jon-El the same way he would speak to his own sons. "You'll be safe here."

He watched him for a few more minutes, then looked up as he heard the sounds of his wife's footsteps on the stairs.

"Clark?" she called.

"In the guest room!" he answered.

A moment later, Lois walked in and Clark stood up.

"Is that..?" she asked.

Clark nodded. "Ally attacked him at the DoD," he told her. "He would be dead if I hadn't taken him to my mother… He called out for me before he passed out."

Lois shook her head. "He can't stay here, Clark."

He looked back over to the boy on the bed. He knew what would happen if he took him back to the DoD. Jon-El wouldn't survive. Ally would be back for him.

"There isn't anywhere else for him to go," he said. "Ally did this to him."

"But after everything he's done…"

Clark hesitated. If he was being honest, those same thoughts had come to him as well. The idea of bringing such a dangerous being into his home had not been one he was actually very comfortable with.

But Jon-El needed them.

"We can deal with all of that when he wakes up," Clark told her. He reached forward and grabbed her hand. He squeezed it comfortingly.

Lois looked towards Jon-El, then back at Clark. "Fine," she said. "But the boys aren't allowed to get near him."

Clark nodded. "Okay," he said. That was more than fair. If this was all a big plan, then he would want the twins to stay away from Jon-El. It was as close to common sense as this whole idea had been.

"We should let him get some rest," Clark said. "I'll come check in on him in a bit."

Lois nodded, but didn't say anything. She didn't say anything as they both walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. She didn't say anything as she started another pot of coffee and poured them both a cup of it.

She sat down beside Clark as she handed him the steaming mug. She leaned forward and held her mug with both hands. "Feels a bit too early for wine…" she sighed.

Clark let out a soft hum in agreement, then looked up at his wife. "Lois, he isn't safe there," he said. "And especially not now that he's so weak…"

"He's not our Jon, Clark," Lois countered. "He's a criminal, and not our responsibility. He's dangerous, and he wants to hurt our family."

"But he's a child," Clark said. Jon-El was so young, yet so troubled.

From what he could tell on that other world, Jon-El's family had been a mess. He remembered the way Jon-El was treated. He had seen the way his family interacted.

Putting Jon-El in a cage and leaving him there to rot as Clark continued on with his life would be the easy way out, but would it actually help anything? Was it the right choice?

No. Certainly not.

Maybe Jon-El had gotten himself into some trouble, but that didn't mean that he was a lost cause. He just needed someone to show him the way.

"I know you can't trust him, but trust me on this," Clark said. "Please."

Lois sighed, then nodded. "Okay…"

Clark leaned over and pressed a kiss to her lips. "I love you," he told her.

She smiled back at him, but looked up as the front door creaked open. "Sounds like the boys are home," she said.

Clark braced himself for what he knew would happen next. He had to tell them about their unexpected house guest.

Maybe if he was lucky, it wouldn't end in disaster.

Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading!